From Liberty to Democracy: The Transformation of American Government

From Liberty to Democracy traces the evolution of American government and its fundamental principles.

Dennis Coyle
John Samples

John Samples directs Cato’s Center for Representative Government, which studies campaign finance regulation, delegation of legislative authority, term limits, and the political culture of limited government and the civic virtues necessary for liberty. He is an adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University. Samples is the author of The Struggle to Limit Government: A Modern Political History and The Fallacy of Campaign Finance Reform. Prior to joining Cato, Samples served eight years as director of Georgetown University Press, and before that, as vice president of the Twentieth Century Fund. He has published scholarly articles in Society, History of Political Thought, and Telos. Samples has also been featured in mainstream publications like USA Today, the New York Times, and the Los Angeles Times. He has appeared on NPR, Fox News Channel, and MSNBC. Samples received his Ph.D. in political science from Rutgers University.

Joseph Romance
Randall G. Holcombe

Featuring the author, Randall G. Holcombe; with comments by Dennis Coyle, Catholic University of America; and Joseph Romance, Drew University. Moderated by John Samples, Cato Institute. From Liberty to Democracy traces the evolution of American government and its fundamental principles. At the nation’s founding, the principle underlying American government was liberty, and the nation’s new government was designed to protect the rights of individuals. By the end of the 20th century, American government had been transformed, and public policy was designed to further the will of the majority. According to economist Randall Holcombe, this change has produced a government that is larger and broader in scope than intended by the Founders. What is the fate of liberty in a political world dominated by majority rule?